Safeguarding & Welfare Officer

Job Title: Safeguarding & Welfare Officer 

Employer: Lewes FC 

Hours & Availability: 2.5 days/week with ability to work occasional evenings and weekends. 

Location: Flexible/with option for some home-working hours 

Remuneration: £26,000 pro rata (£13,000) 

Purpose: To lead and manage safeguarding across the Club while providing holistic player care 

support to ensure the physical, emotional, and psychological wellbeing of all players. The role 

bridges compliance and welfare, promoting a safe and supportive environment that allows players 

to thrive on and off the pitch. 

Application Process: 

Lewes FC is s an equal opportunity employer and welcomes applications from all backgrounds, 

including those from under-represented groups such as women, BAME and LGBTQ+ individuals and 

people with disabilities, Acknowledging the lack of diversity in football, we ensure that the application process does not unduly favour those with prior experience in the game. 

We are committed to safeguarding children and vulnerable adults and require all staff and 

volunteers to uphold the FA’s Code of Conduct and Safeguarding policies. Applicants must disclose 

any past criminal convictions or investigations by the FA or other regulatory bodies, including 

education, healthcare or other sectors. 

To apply, please email a CV and cover letter outlining why you’d be great for the role alongside any 

relevant experience to applications@lewesfc.com with the subject line: “Safeguarding and Welfare 

Officer: Your Name”. 

 The interview process will commence on 2nd June 2025. 

We will be accepting applicants through the interview process. The role will be open until filled. 

We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if we receive sufficient applicants for the role. 

Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible. 

Role Responsibilities & Key Duties 

Establish and implement good processes, policies and procedures 

1. Implement, promote and review the Club’s safeguarding policies, procedures and bestpractice guidelines. 

2. Provide regular reports to the Club’s Board of Directors including the Safeguarding 

Champion. 

3. Work closely with senior management to develop and implement safe recruitment and 

induction practices across the Club. 

4. Give direction and guidance to staff in respect of safeguarding concerns, allegations and the 

Club’s whistleblowing policy. 

5. Be the main point of contact with statutory and football authorities on safeguarding issues, 

sharing information where appropriate and developing strong partnerships. 

Report, manage and log concerns 

1. Develop strong relationships with coaches, especially in our pathway and support them with 

concerns or queries on safeguarding and wellbeing of players. 

2. Work in partnership with colleagues, The FA, statutory agencies and other relevant 

organisations to report and manage concerns effectively and efficiently. 

3. Ensure all safeguarding and poor practice concerns are recorded in a robust system and 

securely retained in accordance with data protection legislation. 

4. Maintain accurate, confidential and up to date records on all safeguarding concerns and 

allegations in line with Applicable Data Protection Laws. 

Educate and raise awareness 

1. Pro-actively promote and raise safeguarding awareness across the club including the men’s 

and women’s first teams and both pathway structures and with parents. 

2. Be the Club’s lead source of safeguarding support, advice and expertise. 

3. Attending regular safeguarding training and maintaining an up to date knowledge of 

relevant legislation, regulations and best practice. 

4. Ensure staff/volunteers understand their individual responsibilities to safeguard and 

promote the welfare of vulnerable groups and respond appropriately to safeguarding 

concerns. 

5. Ensuring staff engage with regular safeguarding education to ensure they develop and 

maintain the necessary skills and knowledge to safeguard in their role. 

6. Arrange and deliver briefing workshops, in life skills and safeguarding topics such as antibullying, appropriate use of social media, code of conducts, to staff and players. 

Set club-wide safeguarding, welfare and player care standards and a culture that promotes 

positive mental and physical wellbeing. 

1. Develop and implement a player care strategy tailored to the specific needs of players in the 

footballing environment. 

2. Offer proactive wellbeing support to players, including mental health, education, and 

transition support. 

3. Be an active participant on the club’s Mental Health and Wellbeing team, and support the 

implementation of the mental health strategy across the club. 

4. Identify and implement ways to encourage and promote club values and positive behaviours 

across staff, first teams, coaching staff and pathway teams and coaches on both the men’s 

and women’s side. 

5. Provide 1:1 support or signposting to specialist services for players experiencing issues (e.g. 

homesickness, injury, career uncertainty). 

6. Liaise with coaching and medical staff to ensure a holistic understanding of player needs and 

concerns. 

7. Monitor and support transition of players between clubs to ensure that their welfare needs 

are considered throughout onboarding and exit processes 

Key Skills & Experience 

• Ability to promote best practice and the importance of a safe environment. 

• Knowledge and experience of working in safeguarding or child/adult protection and 

implementing policy and procedure with a understanding of what constitutes poor practice 

and what is abusive behaviour. 

• Demonstrable experience in safeguarding roles, preferably within a sport setting 

• Proven understanding of FA safeguarding frameworks and best practices. 

• Experience supporting player welfare or personal development in an elite or professional 

sports context. 

• Knowledge of safeguarding children legislation and statutory guidance and understanding of 

Local Authority statutory bodies. 

• A person-centred approach and the ability to maintain this perspective. 

• Excellent communication skills with the ability to build meaningful, strong relationships with 

staff, players and parents/carers and deal constructively with people’s emotions (e.g. upset, 

distress, conflict, animosity). 

• Experience of writing reports and compiling case file information. 

• Capacity to handle confidential data/information sensitively. 

• Ability to use Microsoft Office including Word, Excel and PowerPoint. 

• Working understanding of inclusion, equality and anti-discrimination, safeguarding and best 

practice. 

• FA Safeguarding qualifications or training (e.g. Safeguarding Children, Player Welfare in 

Open-Age Football and Welfare Officer Training). 

• Working knowledge of FA Club Portal and other databases and Relationship Management 

systems (desirable)